The Soul Compact (Now Free on Amazon)

Chapter 2

“Promise me you’ll call me as soon as you get there,” Heather Marshall’s mother was telling Heather, as she gave her a very long hug in front of the security gate at the Miami International Airport.  It was as if it was the last time her mother was going to see her.

“Mom, I have to go.  They’re going to board soon,” Heather said as she slowly pulled back.  It was the same airport scene every summer since Heather was thirteen years old.  Before then, her mother always came with her on the flights to deliver her to her father. 

     “OK, I’ll wait for your call,” her mother finally said, as she let her go. Heather then grabbed the backpack that was on the floor next to them and rushed to the gate.  As she was going through the security check, the boarding call came on the airport’s speakers, causing Heather to worry that she might miss the flight.  Fortunately, it was early Saturday morning and the airport was less crowded than usual, which allowed Heather to reach the boarding gate just when the first class passengers were boarding the airplane.

     Heather’s seat was in the second row and always by the window as she liked.  She did not know how her father, who was always very busy, could remember this small detail.  But she was grateful.  As a regular first class passenger, Heather was familiar with the extra attention that she, along with other first class passengers, received from flight attendants whenever she traveled with her mother by plane.    

However, this morning was different. Heather could not lift a finger without someone coming quickly to see if she needed something, and she knew why.  This always happened whenever she was visiting her father, regardless of the country he was sent to. Two years ago, it was Congo, and years before that, Senegal.  It was as if her father’s influence extended even to the small confines of the first class section of the aircraft. 

This morning, as a flight attendant came to offer service to Heather one last time before takeoff, Heather felt as if she had a sign on her forehead, informing every one that she was the daughter of Dr. Jack Marshall, the US Ambassador to Haiti.  

Even though the flight to Haiti was less than two hours, for Heather, who liked to be left alone, it was going to be a very long flight.  

Suddenly Heather’s cellphone chirped, indicating that she had received a text message. Without looking, she knew it was Peter Egorov.  She wanted to talk to him, but the flight attendant had already ordered that all cellphones be turned off.

It was only 9:00 am and Heather was tired from the night before, when she, Peter, her best friend Judy Allen and another friend from her high school had gone to a late night movie together.  When Peter took her home, Peter had confessed his love for her.  She knew she loved Peter too, but she didn’t tell Peter.  She was afraid the relationship would not last.  She and Peter were so different, like her father and mother, whose marriage only lasted three years.

Heather had one more year left of high school and wanted to go to college to become an expert in languages and a diplomat like her father.  Peter, on the other hand, had not graduated from high school.  Instead, he had left high school early and taken his GED, and then had concentrated on his programming career. Peter was eighteen years old now, one year older than Heather, and had become one of the best computer security experts in the world, with expertise in the development of government anti-hacking systems and firewalls.

Heather closed her eyes for one second. She was missing him already. She must have been really tired because when she opened her eyes, the plane was already preparing to land at the Port-au-Prince International Airport, in the capital of Haiti.

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     Like many airports in the Caribbean, the Port-au-Prince International Airport looked more like a regional airport than the international airport that it was.  The airport terminal was a small three-story building, with one small jetway that leads to waiting buses for the passengers’ short trip to the immigration and customs building.